What is the next step for Mohamed Salah and Liverpool?

Mohamed Salah was one of the first players to leave Liverpool Locker room after Sunday Victory over Nottingham Forest.

When asked if he was keen to talk, the Egyptian striker politely declined and smiled as he made his way through the mixed zone to the team bus. No need to stop when you start.

It has now been more than two months since Salah’s sensational interview with Leeds United, when he claimed the club threw him under the bus after being left out of the starting lineup for the third match in a row.

Regardless of what people think, it has worked out somewhat for him.

Liverpool’s injury woes have certainly played a part too, and since his return from the Africa Cup of Nations in January, the 33-year-old has featured in every single match for Liverpool. Before the Africa Cup of Nations, coach Arne Slott did not start him for five consecutive matches.

Those close to the situation insist that making a statement on his social media channels was considered an option rather than the interview at Leeds, but such was Salah’s anger at the way he felt he was treated that he wanted to come out all guns blazing.

“I don’t know why, but it seems to me that someone doesn’t want me at the club,” Salah said at Elland Road.

The following week, he apologized to his teammates, shook hands with Slott, and the Liverpool manager insisted there was no longer a problem to solve. Salah headed to the Africa Cup of Nations where he flourished.

A member of the Egyptian national team told BBC Sport that the happiest thing they saw was Salah, who described it as the “best camp” of his life.

Upon his return to Liverpool, he went straight back into the team, and after Liverpool’s win over Brighton in the FA Cup this month – a game in which he scored a goal and an assist – Slott was keen to highlight Salah’s work off the ball.

“What I like most is that he scores goals [which you] “I would almost expect – but he also helps the team a lot defensively and that’s a very positive thing,” Slott said.

In terms of regaining possession of the pitch and the final third, Salah has improved compared to last season.

He has scored two goals and provided four assists in those eight games since his return, but for a man accustomed to the extraordinary, the key measure is what he misses.

You have to go back to November to score his last Premier League goal, and if he doesn’t score against West Ham at Anfield on Saturday (15:00 GMT), there will be 10 games without a goal in the Premier League. This is already the longest drought of his Premier League career.

“He sets his own standards, and they’re so high that the minute he doesn’t score in some game, people are immediately surprised. That’s probably the biggest compliment he can get,” Slott said Friday.

Salah is already a victim of his own standards, and as such, has felt his decline often. He is averaging 0.56 goals and one assist per league game this season compared to 1.25 last season, when he scored the most goals and registered the most assists. In fact, his offensive production has more than halved.

He is also taking fewer shots and taking fewer touches in the opposition penalty area, while his xG (expected goals) rate per 90 minutes has halved from 0.68 to 0.34.

However, the overall offensive numbers are still good. Salah has more goal contributions (10) in the league than the likes of Cole Palmer and Bukayo Saka, and only Hugo Ekiteke (12) has more for Liverpool.

“We’re used to Mo scoring a lot of goals, and that’s probably the biggest difference in his performance at the moment,” Slott said. “But we also know that this has happened before. I had those questions earlier when he didn’t score for three, he didn’t score for five or I don’t know the exact numbers. But I also know that in the end, he always starts scoring again.”